Fire Chief Keith Richter of the Orange County Fire Authority. STEVEN GEORGES, FOR THE REGISTER

Fire Chief Keith Richter’s leadership of the county’s largest fire agency will be questioned by more than 1,000 firefighters under his command, who will decide whether or not they have confidence in their chief.

After a two-day meeting, members of the Orange County Professional Firefighter’s Association signed a petition Thursday to hold a vote of no confidence against Richter and his executive staff, who have been under fire recently over a spat of recent troubles and controversies at the Fire Authority.

“Emotions are very high and the rank and file are demanding change,” said Joe Kerr, spokesman for the firefighters’ labor union.

If approved by the firefighters, the vote would then prompt the union to ask the 25-member board of directors to remove Richter as chief of the Orange County Fire Authority.

The vote of no confidence going out to firefighters comes during Richter’s most turbulent year leading the Fire Authority, and after the board of directors directed him to reform the troubled agency.

It also comes just days after Richter announced a plan that would dramatically change how firefighters are deployed in most of Orange County – reducing four-person crews to three, increasing the number of paramedic units in the day, and reducing firefighters stationed overnight.

The plan was immediately opposed by union leaders, who referred to the plan as, “essentially the last straw.”

Richter could not be immediately reached for comment, but has defended the deployment plan. In a recent statement, he also said he was “disappointed” in the union’s position.

“The union leadership has a single purpose; take care of its members,” Richter wrote in an email to the Register. “My role as Chief is to take care of the employees, but also meet the needs of the public.”

Kerr said the firefighters’ concern was driven by public safety concerns over the deployment plan, and that the union meeting to discuss a vote of no confidence was driven by the union’s rank-and-file members.

Kerr referred to the petition signed by the firefighters as “unprecedented,” and the first time in the agency’s history such a vote has been called by the rank-and-file against a chief.

The petition was signed by more than 500 firefighters during a two-day meeting, he said.

Though the firefighters’ vote does not guarantee any subsequent action, it would be a political blow for Richter, who underwent a tense, closed door review late last year while some elected officials hinted at his replacement.

During that time, leaders of the firefighters’ union publicly backed the chief. Their support was seen by some public officials as key. But union President Dave Rose announced in a letter to the board of directors last week that the union could no longer support Richter, adding the chief was, “leading OCFA down a destabilizing path.”

“He has failed to demonstrate effective leadership on behalf of the organization and in protection of the citizens of Orange County,” read the letter, which was obtained by the Orange County Register.

Richter was hired back in 2009, but the last 18 months have been the most tumultuous.

In the last few months, the Fire Authority lost the ability to conduct hazardous material inspections after it was found hundreds businesses were billed for inspections that didn’t happen. Fire Marshal Laura Blaul, who headed the program, was put on administrative leave during an internal investigation and later announced her retirement.

In February, OCFA also lost the responsibility of selecting ambulance contracts for most of the county.

The tally of the firefighters’ vote may take two to four weeks to county, union officials said.

Kerr, spokesman for the firefighters’ union, said morale in the agency has been at its lowest point since the county declared bankruptcy in 1994.

An internal survey of more than 500 employees in the agency seems to support the assertion.

In an effort to reform the agency, the Fire Authority’s board of directors hired an outside consultant to look at the management of the agency.

When employees were asked if they agreed with the statement that morale was good in the department, 81 percent of the 524 respondents said they strongly disagreed, or disagreed.

Union officials said dozens of firefighters were expected to make an appearance during OCFA’s board of directors to announce the results of the petition.

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